Burke, John M.

John takes great pride in helping working men and women in New Jersey get back on their feet when they have been injured in an accident.  He tells his clients to focus on getting better and he and his staff will take care of everything else. 

John helped work his way through Law School by refereeing high school basketball and umpiring baseball games after classes would finish for the day.  He also has run five marathons including a personal best time of 3:48 at the Philadelphia Marathon. John's lifelong love of sports, competition and teaching then led to years volunteering and coaching his children and other young boys and girls in basketball, baseball and softball in Montclair.   John approaches his cases with the same competitive spirit that it takes to be successful in all things: hard work and preparation.   

These are just some of his many excellent results for his clients: 

In December of 2020, John M. Burke, Esq. settled a products liability case for $4,500,000.  It is believed to be one of the largest personal injury settlements or recoveries of the year in the State of New Jersey.  The claim was brought on behalf of a worker who was permanently injured an accident who was severely injured due to an allegedly defective product.  John’s client underwent an above-the-knee amputation of the leg.   The worker was not able to return to work given the severity of these injuries.  The product manufacturer denied that its product was defective and denied that the product caused the accident.  The case settled at a second mediation session before a retired Superior Court Judge.  John and his team worked tirelessly for their client.  The insurance carrier for the product manufacturer disputed liability.  The case settled for more than twenty-two (22x) the insurance carrier’s initial offer of only $200,000.  John invested significant resources and countless hours into building the case.  John and his expert engineer had to inspect and test the machinery many times; John took depositions of witnesses to the accident, and of employees of the manufacturer. John also hired other persuasive expert witnesses to document the accident’s devastating effect on his client’s life. John hired economists to document the worker’s financial losses;  vocational experts to meet and test the injured worker to see whether they could resume a less physically-demanding job; and medical experts to document the severity of these injuries and limitations.  John also hired a videographer to document the most difficult days of his client’s life post-accident.  John noted that “much of the credit goes to my client, who was not bitter even though their life took a tragic turn through no fault of their own.  This client’s positive spirit assisted us greatly to obtain this excellent financial recovery for the client.  Nothing will make up for what happened,  but their financial future is now secure.”  John understands that devastating injuries happen too often at work. He and his team strive to achieve justice for clients who have been badly injured through no fault of their own. 

In 2020, John settled a case for $1,000,000 for a woman who was injured in two separate accidents.  One was an auto accident in which she hurt her neck, back and hip, and then a fall-down accident in which she re-aggravated those parts of her body when she fell on ice in a parking lot.   John was able to obtain security image of her falling in the parking lot and had medical illustrations to show the several surgeries she had to undergo.    The defense argued that her injuries were preexisting as she had an earlier back surgery twenty years earlier.  However, the case was strengthened with good visual evidence of her prior good health and activity in the years before her motor vehicle accident. The case resolved after successful mediation with a retired New Jersey  Judge. 

In 2018, John obtained a $1,250,000. settlement for a man injured by a tractor trailer accident while he was working at a garbage facility. The accident victim sustained injuries to his foot, jaw, shoulder and back. Initially, the insurance carriers for all involved completely denied responsibility for the man’s injuries. Even the worker's compensation carrier tried to not pay the immediate and urgent care he needed.  John got that part resolved quickly and then took on the case against the insurance carriers for the people that caused the accident.  John was able to get the case settled for the injured worker. By using his twenty years of experience in handling accident cases throughout the State of New Jersey and hiring qualified expert witnesses to be able to explain to a jury (and insurance company representatives) why a truck driver and a facility operator were at fault for this worker’s injuries, John was able to obtain this good settlement for his Client. This case also settled after a mediation session with a retired New Jersey Judge. 

Mr. Burke obtained a $750,000. settlement for a nineteen year old woman who was significantly injured in a motor vehicle accident. The young lady sustained herniated discs in her lower back and in her neck and a jaw (TMJ) injury. She underwent back surgery about two years after the accident as well as arthroscopic surgery for her jaw. The insurance carrier for the other driver contested that her injuries were related to the motor vehicle accident. The case arbitrated for the said amount which was paid by the insurance company.

Knowing what cases are worth are a very important trait for a personal injury lawyer so he can give good advice to his client when money is offered to settle. One of Mr. Burke's favorite cases was when he won a jury verdict for an injured client, a United States Marshall Officer, who fell and sustained a non-displaced broken ankle while transporting a prisoner through a parking lot on an uneven surface. The Plaintiff wore a cast for six weeks and then underwent physical therapy to help rehabilitate the ankle. Even though an offer was made, John and his client rejected it as being too low.  Evidence was presented at trial that the injuries impeded the Plaintiff from engaging in rigorous physical activity, including special training in the United States Army Reserve. The jury award him $48,400. which was double the offer from the insurance company.  John and his client were pleased that the jury agreed that his case was worth that amount, which was in line with what John thought the case should settle for.